US Secretary of State John Kerry (2nd L), US Under Secretary for Political Affairs Wendy Sherman (2nd R) and staff watch a tablet in Lausanne as U.S. President Barack Obama makes a state address on the status of the Iran nuclear program talks, April 2, 2015 (Reuters / Brendan Smialowski) / Reuters

Iranian lawmakers published their view of what a nuclear deal with the P5+1 group should be, demanding a shorter term of restrictions, upgrade of centrifuges and continuation of enrichment at Fordo facility.

The requirements were
presented this week by the parliament’s Nuclear Committee and
published by the FARS news agency. They include setting the
time over which limits would be imposed on Iranian nuclear
activities to five year compared to longer periods of 10 to 25
years, which were voiced earlier by the US. The lawmakers want
research, development and production of new centrifuges to
continue and that older centrifuges are gradually replaced with
new ones.

The committee agreed to ship spent nuclear fuel from the Arak
heavy water reactor out of the country to address concerns over
plutonium in it, but rejected the idea of rebuilding its core. It
also demanded that enrichment at Frodo installation continued to
levels under 5 percent. The lawmakers also demand that Iran not
be subjected to any inspections that other signatories of the
Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty undergo.

Iranian ‘factsheet’ key points

- All presently installed centrifuges kept

- 10,000 centrifuges active

- 5-year enrichment restriction

- Development of new models continues, replacement possible
after 5 years

- Fordo enrichment continues

- 20 percent enrichment capability preserved, used as necessary

- Arak reactor not retrofitted

- Iran inspected by IAEA on par with other NPT signatories

- Sanctions lifted immediately

Iran and six major world powers held marathon talks in Lausanne,
Switzerland, to agree on a framework deal on the controversial
Iranian nuclear power program. It paves the way for a final deal
to be finalized in summer. The only official papers released
after the negotiations was a joint statement by EU High
Representative Federica Mogherini and Iranian Foreign Minister
Javad Zarif.

The US later
presenteda five-page
documentwith
highlights of the future deal, which it said Iran had agreed to.
This ‘factsheet’ released by the US State Department angered a
number of Iranian officials, who said the Americans misreported
or distorted key terms agreed to in Switzerland.

The document also sparked fears in Iran that the deal the nuclear
negotiators are aiming at now would compromise Iranian interests
too much. The Iranian parliament voted last Sunday to demand an
accurate factsheet from the team.

"The Americans did it in written form... and our narrative
which was a real one was thoroughly expressed in Mr. Zarif's
remarks. We don't intend to publish it in writing yet, but we
will do so if necessary," a senior Iranian nuclear
negotiator said last week prior to the revelation of the
parliament’s letter demanding explanations.

The document detailing the Iranian
committee’s stance on the issue is called a ‘factsheet’ as well
in an apparent snub to the American paper. Unlike the American
version it does not purport to represent the framework deal
reached by Iran and P5+1, but rather suggests what the final deal
should be.

The Iranian committee’s stance not only rejects the US version
but also demands an alteration to the Lausanne statement. The
statement said the Fordo reactor would be converted in a way to
prevent it producing weapon-grade plutonium, and that Iran would
sign up to additional monitoring by the UN nuclear watchdog.

US ‘factsheet’ key points

- No more than 6,104 centrifuges installed

- 5,060 centrifuges active

- 10-year enrichment restriction

- Only the oldest IR-1 model in use, development of new models
halted for 10 years

The document comes after it was revealed that US Congress would
have a say on the future nuclear deal and that the Obama
Administration agreed to the latest version of a bipartisan bill
warranting that. The bill was unanimously voted for by the
Senate’s Foreign Relations Committee earlier this week.

The White House softened its position after months of pressure
from Israel and its allies in the US legislature. Israel appears
to perceive any deal that Iran would be willing to sign as a
threat to its national security.

While the quarrel between Washington and Tehran over the details
of the would-be deal is far from being hidden, the differences
are be far more profound than they appear, political commentator
Marwa Osman told RT.

“When the media picture the bickering between US and Iran
over the proposed deal they are only focusing on the way the
sanctions should be removed, gradually or just as the deal is
done. But there are other elements that are very important and
need to be dealt with in the upcoming 2.5 months, or there will
be no deal.”

She said issues such as verifying Iran follow the deal, the
conditions under which Iran would be considered to be violating
the deal, with sanctions being resumed, or the US wish to
investigate past nuclear activities in Iran are all very
sensitive and must be addressed in the deal.